Farm Evacuation Plan

Farm evacuation will be a major undertaking. Emergency plans should be developed well in advance of any evacuation to insure that all goes as smoothly as possible. Evacuation planning is an important part of the emergency plan and should not be overlooked.

If evacuation is the appropriate choice, it is imperative that preparations are made far ahead of time. In most cases it will be impossible to make last minute preperations for such things as animal shelter, etc.

Transportation can be a major undertaking. Not only does there need to be suitable and sufficient means to evacuate livestock, the owner must keep in mind that in the case of a major disaster most roads will be crowded with vehicles full of people evacuating the area. Governmental agencies may take control of major thoroughfares and direct which traffic may use them. It is possible that regaining access to one's farm is difficult, or impossible, making multiple trips to retrieve livestock unlikely.

Given the logistics of evacuation, the following planning needs to take place before any disaster strikes.

• Identify potential evacuation routes, including alternate routes.
• Insure that sufficient and suitable transportation is available for humans and animals
• Prioritize evacuees prior to any disaster. In other words, if time and/or resources prevent a complete evacuation, determine ahead of time which animals will be evacuated.
• Plan to remove or protect items to get the operation started again (records and important equipment)
• Plan to protect assets that can not be removed as best as possible.
• Containment of hazardous materials as possible.

A complete disaster plan will include the return to the farm. Remember, structures may be damaged, live utility lines may be exposed, gas lines may be ruptured and leaking, etc. Reentering a disaster area must be done with care and caution.